Dairy Intolerance Hack – My favourite milk alternatives

Tummy grumbles, snotty noses, recurrent ear and chest infections, lethargy, aching muscles and a weakened immune system are only some ailments that can plague those with intolerances to cows milk. Sufferers often move onto Lactose Free milk thinking it’s the lactose (the naturally occurring milk sugar) that’s the culprit but a growing number of Australians are in actual fact reacting to the protein in the milk called casein. And unfortunately for those hooked on cows milk, you can’t get a casein-free milk from anything with four legs that makes milk. That’s right, sheeps milk, goats milk, cows milk, and camels milk are all non-options for those sensitive to casein. This means you’ll be looking for a plant-based milk to fill the empty space in your refrigerator door.

What makes getting away from dairy so difficult is that so many of the alternatives are full of additives that make drinking them also an unhealthy option. For example, one of the big name Almond milk has more sugar in it than Almonds, and the vegetable gum they add makes the milk kind of sludgy. Other brands add flavouring to their concoction which then give your scrambled eggs or mashed potatoes that hint of vanilla taste that has everyone leave them on their plate. People have been running away from Soy milks for the last 15-20 years, and carrageenan is popping up in a lot of organic foods as an emulsifying and thickening agent. It’s in some plant-based milks too and research is pointing to it being destructive to the gut. See Katie Wells simple explanation about Carrageenan here.

Described here are two no-nonsense brands which make plant-based milks with no nasties and quality ingredients making them the superb options to head to first.

For kidlets, Coco Quench made by Pure Harvest is a must have. It’s 100% GMO-free and is made of 20% organic coconut milk, organic brown rice, filtered water and some salt. That’s it! Yes it comes in a tetra pack so it has been pasteurised, but it is not homogenised which is a plus. This long-life option does make it convenient to keep at Nanny and Poppy’s place for drop-ins or when travelling. Coco Quench is a sweeter mix due to it mostly being rice milk, with the coconut making it that bit more creamy. Near where I live, it is a popular option for cafes to use in their range of milk options and it does spin well enough to make a creamy cappuccino.

Don’t offer your children a straight glass of Coco Quench until they’re used to it. Expectation management is the key here… if it’s doesn’t taste like the milk they expect, you’ll have a hard time bringing it into the family fold. Coco Quench can be most easily introduced by replacing milk in smoothies, hot chocolates and egg custards. Your children will quite likely not even notice the change. In our home, we use it for our morning porridge or bircher muesli and in all our sweeter baking needs, Check out the Pure Harvest website for some recipes your family will love.

Nutty Bruce is hands down the BEST easy to buy milk alternative on the market in SEQ today. It’s available in IGA and Woolworths in the chilled milk section. Most adults would prefer one (or all) of the Nutty Bruce range over Coco Quench due to it’s not-so-sweetness and versatility (yes, go ahead, add some activated almond milk to your eggs and mashed potato). Check out these ingredients in the Activated Almond Milk – Filtered Water (84.5%), Activated Organic Almonds (10%) (almonds that have been soaked in water for 12 hours), Organic Rice Syrup, Sea Salt. How refreshing!!

So Nutty Bruce has a growing range and they are all A1! All organic, all without thickeners and funky ingredients that you don’t want to ingest. There’s Activated Almond Milk, Almond and Coconut Milk (with rice), and Coconut Milk (with rice) so there’s plenty for you to try. Nutty Bruce has made plant milks the way you would at home, so you don’t have to! Thanks Bruce!

Coco Quench is available in IGA, ALDI, Woolworths and Coles in the long life milk section for around $3.50.

Nutty Bruce is available in IGA and Woolworths in the refrigerated milk section. It lasts in the fridge unopened for about 1 month!